MK: Deadly Alliance to Deception Novelization
by BourgeoisB
Summary: The novelization of the two latest Mortal Kombat games-Deadly Alliance and Deception, both of which are essentially part one and two of the same story.
1. Author's Intro

Heya peeps, I'm new to this place, and finally decided to try my hand at writing a story here.

If you couldn't tell, it's the novelization of the two latest games, Deadly Alliance and Deception. Pay attention to the stories, and you'll notice they're part one (DA) and part two (D) of the same story. It fascinated me to realize that, and how big an adventure this really was.

This follows the Mortal Kombat Plot FAQ for 95 percent of the time, the remaining 5 percent being the 'days' (my own invention), and two battles (Ashrah vs. Nightwolf, Sareena vs. Frost)-but these two battles should hopefully make sense in the grand scheme of things. As a fighting game fan and a plot weenie, I figure that there should, you know, actually be fights that happened in the plot, right?

Anyway, read, critique, and hopefully enjoy, people!


	2. Day One

**DAY ONE**

**--------------**

Hell.

The old man had been here once, before. With a frown beginning to form on his withered face, he slowly realized, sadly, that he could remember it all.

The red, craggy, deformed caverns. The eternal stench of sulphur in the red sky, a sky that made him sweat and gasp for breath occasionally-a wonder he did not do it more, considering his age. Beside his feet, which were standing on a stony, cracked surface that seemed devoid of all plant life-lay what he had so long ago figured to be the fabled river Styx, a large, gushing river of magma and lava that presumably held the remains what were many bodies of demons and other unlucky bodies' remains.

He looked upwards. There was not many people, indeed, any sort of being or creature, that one could find in the Netherealm unless they were at some sort of torturing device or city. That was part of what made you mad, the old one had learned. Not being able to find anyone in such a bleak and desolate place...for days, even weeks if you were truly helpless to find your way around...

He knew he was most fortunant to stay in one area, and even more so, to have been transported back into the one area he had visited before, when he had been in his early twenties. His guide had sent him back in complete anger to this place, this terrible place, to relearn darkness of the soul, in order to enter other lands full of it. Cynicality. Bitterness. Anger. Wrath. He had had enough of it, enough to last his lifetime with what he had seen in other realms, much less his first sojurn into this realm...but it had not been enough. He hung his head in frustration as he continued walking.

He considered himself lucky to have found someone full of the hate he needed so much. It had been a ninja, one clad in the distinctive yellow and black pattern of the Shirai Ryu clan. He had met one, once, many decades ago in the land of Chaos-the warrior was looking for a mask of a fallen comrade to prove to his clan elders the fellow member had indeed fallen. The old one had found the mask and had been rewarded handsomely.

Sadly, the tale had only furthered angered this particular one when he heard of it, and the old man almost felt threatened for his life. The yellow one had calmed down, of course, and the old man finally cajoled him into spending some days with him. It was there the man learned that the ninja was named only Scorpion, and that he was not human as he had at first suspected-he was a spectre, a damned being searching only for revenge. It had explained why he had been so enflamed when he heard the mere mention of his clan, and he apparently had been unable to rest for a dozen years-he had thought he could when his rival-a light blue warrior with the albility to generate ice-from a rival clan, was killed by his hand.

Scorpion thought he could rest. He wondered why he couldn't. He soon found out why: his family, his clan, were not slew by the rival ninja. They were slain by Quan Chi.

The old man had learned from Scorpion that so many years ago this Quan Chi had hired him to fetch a map to retrieve a fabled, fantastic amulet that granted his master-Elder God of Darkness, Shinnok-the albility to travel through realms at will and give him unlimited amplification of his considerable powers. Scorpion had been killed by the light blue ninja-Sub-Zero-and his clan, which was his entire life, was murdered needlessly by Chi for Sub-Zero and his clan's-the Lin Kuei-benefit. He had been tricked, all this time, but it was not truly why he was so angry....

....the slimy, dark practicioner of dark arts had killed his family. His wife and young boy. Just as part of a plan to have him kill Sub-Zero and his younger brother, who had since begun to oppose Chi. The plan had nearly worked, as the old man learned. Scorpion related how he had the younger Sub-Zero laying half-dead at his feet, and was proclaiming his soul could finally rest with his life's destroyers killed. Yet when the man proclaimed his innocence...proclaimed he could never murder needlessly...Scorpion had realized the ice-gifted warrior was right. He had seen him grant mercy several times. He couldn't just do this all of a sudden.

That had been when Chi came in. He had obviously enjoyed watching the battle and his enemy nearly destroyed. As he came in, purposly timed to Sub-Zero's proclamation of innocence, the sorceror described to Scorpion with dripping detail how he had manipulated him, how he had killed his life-his clan and family-and then laughed as he learned of what had happened to Scorpion. With a smirk, he uttered an incantation lost to time and saw the ninja spectre begin to fade away, banished back to damnation.

It hadn't quite worked out that way.

The withered one learned then how Scorpion had lunged at Chi, and inexplicably latched onto him, bringing him into into the Netherealm. From there, he explained, the last five years had been spent making Quan Chi, high priest to the now-deceased Shinnok, pay for all the evil he had done in his life. He was in no hurry to kill Chi, which would have allowed his soul to leave his spectre body and finally rest. He wanted to make Chi pay. Squeal. Tremble with fear...

....but some time ago the despicable man escaped. And so Shujinko, Champion of the Elder Gods, follower of the guide Damashi, and Protector of All Realms, found himself searching for this sorceror, in return for training in both fighting styles and darkness of the soul. The Champion had finally been giving a passing grade from the spectre, and he was now fullfillinf his end of the bargain by hunting for Chi-

-....was that him?

White pale skin....like a corpse, Scorpion had described. Black, souless eyes. Bald. A sneer that would intimidate anyone. And attached to his person the amulet, the legendary amulet, so many have tried to take for themselves.

Shujinko raised himself to his full height. He was always an honorable man-he would announce his intentions-this man deserved to die. "**QUAN CHI!"**

The man turned, and what he saw disgusted him. A withered old geezer, obviously an Earthling-they almost always made up all the elderly population he had seen in his lifetime, due to their pathetic lifespans. "What do you want, old man?" he shouted back, his raspy voice echoing through the caverns of damnation. "I am a busy man. You should be happy I give you this moment of my valuble time."

Shujinko knew that staying calm would be best, but could not resist tossing a jab of his own. Walking slowly toward the pale artist of dark magic, he spoke slowly and clearly. "You deserve my time, despicable one. You have been responsible for the suffering of millions over millenia. I have come from one who wishes to seek you....one who wishes you harm for all you have done, in particular him."

That did the trick. Shujinko saw Chi's normally harsh look begin to contort into one of fear as he realized there only one man in particular this messenger could mean. It was-

"**HE MEANS THE ONE YOU BETRAYED. SCORPION."**

Shunjinko and Chi turned to their right in genuine shock. True to the ninja he was suppose to be, Scorpion had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Shujinko reasoned in his mind Scorpion had apparently been following him silently from behind, apparently confident he could find his quarry. He was thankful he was not about to be on the recieving end of whatever punishment the spectre would give out. He backed away from the other two, not wanting to be a part of the fight he knew would take place.

"You pathetic little worm....thinking you could escape..." Scorpion muttered as he walked ever-so-calmly toward Chi-_were those flames in his eyes? Literal flames?_-"...thinking you could get out of paying for your sins..."-Chi, now fully cringing with horror, was rapidly backing away-"....and thinking you could get out of being with me. Let me tell you...**NEVER!" **

With that, Scorpion then raised his arm out with amazing speed. Shujinko knew from his training what the ninja was going to do.

Quan Chi could not move fast enough, but he could see what was coming to him with terror. That damned spear the bastardalwayshadwith-

-**GLURK-**"AAAAAHHH!" yelled Chi as the razor point of Scorpion's weapon of choice found itself wedged deep into his shoulder. He felt the intense pain rush its way into his nerve centers, but began to feel it intensify...and he felt his feet leave the ground...

...."**C'MERE!"** Scorpion yelled out in a voice Shujinko swore could be heard for miles. Scorpion had always had amazing strength, apparently amplified by the deep plane of the Netherealm they all inhabited. The Champion then watched Scorpion throw a punch across Chi's face-what would be a glancing blow by any other creature in existance caused a loud crack and blood to begin pouring out of the sorceror's mouth-with obvious relish. A knee to the stomach caused Chi to almost begin flying into the air. Immediantly a smack down against the back of his skull kept that from happening.

Chi did indeed land face-first onto the rock below. He struggled to get up, and he saw Shujinko staring with obvious awe at the battle. "HELP ME! FOR THE LOVE OF THE GODS, HELP ME!" he yelled out to the messenger of his torment.

Shujinko turned, ignoring Chi's nearly pathetic cries for help. He began to walk toward the portal, to the Nexus, to the way out of this demonic region. "No more, Damashi. I have spent enough time here. No more."

-----

"You hear that?" asked the blood-stained, foul-smelling Drahmin to his compaion. Moloch just grunted in agreement.

Being an oni meant having an absolutely insatiable lust for blood and agony. Drahmin knew that-in his broken, half-witted thoughts he had come to forget he was once a mortal human, a powerful lord, in the service of the Outworld emperor Shao Kahn. His evil and loyalties had banished him to the horrors of the Netherealm upon a surprising death in the battlefield one day centuries ago. Tortured for years, his soul was gradually transformed into a grotesque, skinless cariacture of itself, with a new body to match. He had been transformed into what were essentially the super-demons of existance, large, powerful, dim-witted creatures caring about very few things other than hunger, themselves, and death.

Hopefully, they'd satisfy all three of those objectives soon. The red oni began to walk swiftly to the screams of terror and pain. "Come on," Drahmin muttered to his friend, who silently began to lumber behind him.. Moloch wasn't even able to speak. He was a natural-born monster and had never been able to gain much intelligence in simple matters, much less language. He let Drahmin do whatever talking and thinking he needed-being much larger and vicious due to being born as his species, he held much more rage than Drahmin ever did-and Drahmin had a terribly frightening amount festered up in him.

The two found the source, eventually. Some white guy was being pounded upon by a man in yellow clothing. The yellow one was vicious, raining many tough blows on Whitey....this was good for them. Tender meat. And scared. Even better.

"HELP! HELP, GOD HELP ME!" Chi shouted out. During his quick and fruitless attempt to avoid a kick to his stomach from Scorpion, he had caught sight of two kindred beings-a red humanoid one and a...a large green thing, probably another oni. His mind flashed thoughts of how he was once one.

Drahmin began to snort and peal with laughter-an ugly, joyless laughter that Drahmin intended to show that he did not care of Whitey's fate. "Why you need us? You pathetic. You be sweet meats. You die to be our dinner." Then giving a satisfied screech, to Yellow he called out "BEAT MORE!"

_Bloody oni! _ "I'll do anyth-"-**THWOCK**-"GAAAAAHHHH!" Chi screamed out as he felt his chest receive a solid punch from Scorpion. Staggering back, he attempted to raise himself up, preparing to dodge the next coming blow. "Anything you want! I'll-"-he ducked a roundhouse kick from the Shirai Ryu, literally feeling the wind blow in his face from the swiftness of the attack-"-get you out of here!"

....the same time the two oni paused and stopped their chortleing once they heard that.

Out? Out of fifth plane? How of Hell? Drahmin's broken images and spasms of feelings that made up his thoughts told him that even if this was his home, he would always want to get out of it. Even as one of the most powerful of the Netherealm-bound species, he was always at risk, at hunger, at many bad things. To get out of that would almost mean a life of ease.

"WE HELP! How?" Drahmin asked, truly unaware of the answer. He was indeed stupid.

Quan Chi silently cursed the near-beast's ignorance as he felt Scorpion toss another punch to his side. "GET HIM AWAY FROM ME!" he yelped in an almost pathetic tone. He couldn't take much more abuse and knew it. "HIM!" he pointed to Scorpion.

Drahmin suddenly realized that he should have thought of that earlier. Oh, well, beating people up was something he could do. "Come on!" he said to Moloch, who had been watching the fight with pure intrest. The green beast snapped out of his trance and followed his buddy over to Yellow, his size causing the rocky surface to crack and tremble everytime he took a step. Closer. Closer. Close enough. One whack would take care of him....

**WHAM**

"GWAH!" Scorpion suddenly felt pain smash against the back of his skull. He knew he had been watched, but hadn't cared: not only was he busy giving Quan Chi a lesson in how to rupture organs and let the victim manage to live, he felt he could have taken on anyone stupid enough. But....lord almighty...

He fell with a thud against the ground, positioning himself on his side the best he could to minimize the damage. One instant later found himself rising up from this most unfamiliar position and extremely angry. Whoever whacked him would _PAY...._

.....dear gods, that oni was big.

Scorpion found himself staring at Moloch and Drahmin, and he had to curse his luck. These two were not only oni, a bad enough situation as it was, it was his luck that they seemed particuraly nasty and brutish. The red one looked human...but....had no skin, revealing the many nerves, veins, arteries, and strands of muscle upon muscle that made up the inside of a normal body. He had some weird mask on...green, yellow stripes here and there...spikes coming out of it....no fricking clue why he had it on. But...._damn it..._.a giant metal club made up his right hand. Scorpion had no clue how he got it and did not really care to learn how.

The green one was worse. He was twice the size of the mask-wearing oni, and had three eyes-all yellow, no pupils. Spikes and other bumps jutted out of his back and face, and his mouth held many sharp, jagged, broken teeth and a large amount of saliva drooling out of it. Draped around him was some sort of belt...attached...a giant ball and chain.

Great. So this is what that ass had called out for. Protection from these things.

With a yell of enragement, the yellow ninja then did something the oni hadn't expected: he rushed at them. Quickly he pulled out a sword from one of the two sheathes on his back and leapt into the air-the next instant several quick swings had the green one howling in pain and holding his now-extremely bloody shoulder.

"YOU NO HURT MOLOCH! YOU PAY, ASSHOLE!" Drahmin shouted out, enraged. Was this human stupid? Crazy? Both? He didn't care. With another cry the monster rushed as fast as he could at his newly found adversary, his right arm-sheathed in a somewhat rusty iron club another demon had thrown onto his shoulder out of pure torturous delight so long ago-beginning to swing wildly as he came closer to Scorpion. The spectre hadn't had time to react to another oni so quickly. Though he jumped away from a right hook from the beast, he hadn't expected the thing to throw in a kick to his gut from the left foot. Scorpion felt his stomach jut in with the pain he had become so used to.

...used to it, and thankfully, had since adapted it as a catalyst to rage himself for battle. Looking up, he saw the monster toss both club and normal fist downwards toward his skull, obviously intending to flatten it. He immediantly threw both his open hands toward the oni's fists and caught them, the next moment involving struggling against pressure of being crushed. Slowly, surely, he began to press upward, to the oni's surprise-the dumb thing didn't know that rage and simply being in the Netherealm fueled him, fueled him more than he could ever imagine. It was a good thing he had both factors working right now.

With a yell Scorpion then kicked Drahmin in his chest, knocking him of off his feet and onto the ground with a crunch. The spectre then took a step foward and with a short leap jumped up into the air a few feet-and onto the stomach of his adversary, causing intense howling. God, how he loved this.

He never noticed Moloch rushing toward him from behind.

With a demonic scream and all the strength he could muster, Moloch swiped Scorpion off of his companion. He didn't like seeing Drahmin hurt; it further enranged him that this small, puny human could actually take them on and humiliate them both. Still filled with murderous intent, Moloch saw the yellow one literally fly off of Drahmin, blood gushing from the deep back wounds inflicted from Moloch's claws, and slam face-first onto the ground some yards away from them. He twitched...twitched...slower...

....silence.

That silence kept for several moments, save for intense breathing from the three oni scattered closely about each other, one attempting to pick himself up-two in shock at the fact they had actually had a challenge, the third suddenly realizing that for the first time in five long years he finally had a true respite. He stood up slowly, muttering. Moloch figured Whitey was going crazy.

"By the gods....you two did it...did it...God, yes..." Quan Chi kept mumbling. Scorpion was finally dead, even if only for a short time. This was all he needed. His famous luck coming back to him. All he needed. Now he just needed to find the way out of here...maybe those two would know something.

"ALLIES!" he shouted out to the two oni. They both looked up at him, their intrest perked. "I have the knowledge to escape this horrid place, but not the resources. Should you take me to an area that has information on this plane, I am able to adapt my vast albility to the knowledge I gain in order to grant us freedom. Do you know of any such place?"

The two oni looked to each other. Moloch shrugged, clueless as usual on matters that didn't involve killing. Drahmin would obviously have to be the brains again. Fortuantly, during his several moments of hard ponderance, the red oni had remembered he explored much more than his friend ever had, and still recognized from long-suppressed memories what writing was and held...knowledge, maybe the same knowledge that their new friend needed....he had seen stones covered in unfamiliar letters not far from here. "Yes. Me and Moloch take you to such place. Follow me."

Drahmin began to run off, with Moloch following close behind. Chi began to follow them, disgusted he had to rely on two of the ugliest and most stupid creatures he had ever met. Bah! He was suppose to be a leader, not follower! Indeed, he was once but second-in-command to an Elder God himself! _But..._he thought grimly. _I should be happy I am alive at all. It will not be much longer, anyway._

After traveling for a good bit, Chi was finally beginning to feel the effects of their walking on their battered body when he heard a Drahmin screech out they were here. Walking up, Chi found a sight that overjoyed him-a long stone with a recognizable language! And....by the gods, his luck was indeed coming back...a long corridor beside it, leading to a large, circular disc.

A portal's disc.

Chi hurredly rushed over to the tablet and crouched down on one knee, looking close at the letters, his saviors looking on behind him. In his thousands of years of life he had learned many languages, and this one was an ancient, universal one all magicians and sorcerors had once spoken and continued to study. Muttering to himself, he forced himself to begin memorizing it as soon as he possibly could-he was once again thankful for the gifts the heavens had bestowed upon him at birth, and knew he had it inscribed into his heart within moments. Serious times demanded such skill.

He later realized how thankful he really was to have memorized the stone's inscription so speedily, because it was turned to near dust by the spear that smashed into it.

"SCORPION!" Chi shouted out in surprise. _NO! NOT NOW! NOT WHEN I CAN FINALLY GET OUT OF THIS WRETCHED PLACE!_ "GET HIM! GET HIM NOW, SO I CAN COMPLETE THIS!" he yelled to Moloch and Drahmin, who had been as shocked as he. Immediantly they turned and began to rush at the yellow spectre, angry thoughts in their heads as they cursed him for never letting up. Scorpion himself rushed at the two at full speed, obviously angry at the damage they had given him. Chi watched the three begin full combat, but his mind forced him to stop staring at the spectacle and begin chanting.

He began yelling out the ancient words so many had used to traverse whole worlds and realms at one point, to escape this wasteland, to find freedom in another plane of existance that was gaurenteed to be more pleasant than life in this one. Within minutes, the circular disc in front of all four beings began to crackle and spark with lightning as Chi finished his incantation. The portal was forming.

_NOW!_

With all thoughts focused on himself, Chi forced himself to run as fast as he could down the path to the portal. He didn't care about Moloch or Drahmin, and he certainly didn't care to see Scorpion again. With a yell of desperation, he jumped as hard as he could and-

-"WHERE HE GO?!"

Both oni were confused and enraged. Where did Whitey go? Why did he leave them? He would pay! **PAY**!

Their thoughts were interrupted by a yelp of pain from Moloch. He had been holding Scorpion in his hand, crushing him by squeezing his waist. Their shock had been his oppurtunity: with a swift kick at the Oni's mouth, he had broken a tooth and caused Moloch to drop him. The instant his feet had hit the ground he had begun running off from them down into the portal's path, his purpose recognizable even to the oni. He wouldn't let Chi get away. Never again.

The oni began to ran after him at the fastest sprint they would ever muster in their lives. The portal was beginning to fade, its words that brought it to existance no longer being uttered. The two beasts stumbled best they could, pushing each other for the lead down the thin corridor. Scorpion had already lept in and was no longer with them. They weren't going to make it...Moloch roared in anger...no...no...!

With another roar, both jumped in. They made it.

Quan Chi awoke.

He felt awful. Nauseous. The place seemed dark...was he still in the fifth plane? Instantly he attempted to recover as best as his tired body would allow him, getting into a fighting stance, should Scorpion be waiting for him to regain consciousness.

The mutated oni looked about slowly, cocking and turning his head in every direction. He saw no Scorpion. No oni. No lightning or cloudy skies that Hell was notorious for. A look down at his feet revealed...

....stone tiles? Why was there no solid rocky surface under him? This was a floor. A floor built with apparent devotion.

Quan began to slowly wander about what appeared to be a very large room. Oddly, he felt much better, stronger than he had in....years, to be honest with himself. He didn't know how much sleep he had gotten, but it was obviously enough. He would have to get more of it. He even felt his old surge of strength come back, the one that always allowed him the confidence to be righteous and haughty to his minions...

Light.

"GODS!" he yelled out, surprised. A beam of light shone in. Sunlight.

He had done it....escaped. Freedom!

Chi restrained himself from leaping with joy at his precadiment. He was free! Free from that place! Free from Scorpion! ALIVE! Despite it all, he couldn't help but grin a wide smile.

He then realized it was dawn that was approaching...the light was shining in much stronger now, and he could see around the room he was in. Stony, but well-made and patterned. Hundreds of little statues, though, and-

-by the gods.

Those statues were mummies. Thousands of them.

Where was he?

The oni looked about and found in front an object that utterly surprised him. Was that the portal disc he came out of? It looked...precisely like his amulet...by the gods.

He walked over to it, slowly taking in everything and trying to make sense of it. He was in a tomb. A giant tomb full of mummies, all clad in, he realized, military gear and clothing. He did not feel safe at all, even though he knew they were all dead-and always would be.

He looked downwards after staring at the portal's coincedental look for a few moments. Another tablet, with the same language as the last one...odd. He bent down to read it.

----

Some time later, Quan Chi slowly stood up, turning around to see the bodies he shared this long-forgotten cemetary with, his spirits and mind racing like a madman. He laughed, loudly. He couldn't help it.

These mummies were dead, yes. But they wouldn't always be.


	3. Day Three

DAY THREE 

**------------------**

The sorcerer finally found his energies failing him since he had come here.

Silently, he cursed his luck. Yes, he had escaped into the Outworld from his supposed eternal damnation, and he had found the opportunity of a lifetime-and yet, he had eventually realized, this would take far more work than he had initially imagined. His body still weary and pained from the many attacks he had suffered from Scorpion over the past few weeks, Chi felt his legs begin to give out on him. _It's nearly over, damn it….he will be in but a few days' reach. Hopefully sooner. But I thought THAT…a few days ago, hadn't I?_

Chi had come to the saddening realization that he could not make thisplot, this grand scheme he had quickly and diligently devised while recovering for a day in the mass grave he had teleported into, come to fruitition by himself. He still had been reassessing his strength and magical abilities ever since he had been tossed into this realm, and he was sure that they were still not quite at the level they once were. He needed allies, power. Fortunately, though he had not been in this dimension for centuries, the orders and balances of power and government had not seemed to have changed since he had left-in Outworld, for all the chaos and sorrow it festered and caused, had surprisingly little change in beauracracy-and dictatorship. Chi knew who to find, who could prove to be the catalyst needed to revive the legendary piece of history he had found.

And so it was for that damned catalyst he had found himself walking throughout the Outerealm for two days now, lacking the most basic and needed of supplies, hunger and his body's overwhelming urge to rest overtaking his mind's demands to keep going. He had talked-or rather as he remembered with a smirk, forced-several locals and villagers along his journey to tell him where the mansion of the man he sought was, but was given only rumors and seeming half-truths-it seemed no one in the area knew the exact location of the residence, and had been kept in the dark for a long enough span of time to have simply not troubled themselves on the matter anymore. The fellow sorcerer seemed to relish his secrecy. Chi could never blame a man for that, but with his current state, he allowed himself an exception, sat down onto the ground, panting and gasping for breath to revive his exhausted muscles, and began to curse out the git as loudly as he could.

It looked to be a most long day ahead of him.

----

He was a ninja, a skilled warrior, who had a long list of accomplishments behind him. Bodyguard to emperor Shao Kahn's high priest Shang Tsung, a secretive, deadly, and near-undefeatable opponent of the last five Mortal Kombat tournaments in the Earthrealm, and then a decorated soldier of Kahn's army and even a full-fledged general of fallen Elder God Shinnok's hellspawn troops. Yet that was all ignored now; or scoffed at when it was actually remembered, he had lost to mere Earthlings too many times to salvage his reputation-and now his biggest weapon was his hideous appearance! He could not even practice all the tactics and exercises of ninjitsu properly anymore thanks to it. Instead of fighting in honorable combat, he was now a mere errand boy, this time sweating like a mutt as he climbed over steep hills and scampered around thorn bushes-sometimes on his hind legs, other times on all four limbs as he saw fit-to keep from being cut as he rushed to accomplish his latest mission of delivering an urgent message to master Tsung.

Screeching as he leapt over crevices and vines, not containing his voice's volume due to the fact no one was around to hear his troubles, 'The Reptile', or more simply 'Reptile'-who had been given that moniker due to his real name having been full of clicks and hisses that were unpronounceable in most other species' tongues-let his mind lose itself once more in the now jumbled thoughts that made up his mind. The name had never fit him better than now. He had since lost his species' ability to blend their appearance into another creature's look years ago; and it angered him that he did not know why. Perhaps it was being away from master Kahn so long, as he had suspected? But he had found him again years ago! Yet try as his now frustrated might allow him to, he could only manage to transform himself into a human shell for only extremely short periods of time. He had felt more anger take over in him over those years he had been lost from master Kahn's service, more spasms of emotion. When years ago he still had a fully developed larynx, he had discussed the matter with master Shinnok and his high mage, master Chi, on it; they had told him he was away from his source of strength and promised to restore this power to him.

They never did. Reptile was since glad to have left them. He had been humiliated by his looks when he had finally learned master Kahn was alive and presented himself to his service once more. His snout, jaws and tail had fully taken shape into their original form and stuck out far from his line of vision. His claws and teeth had also regained their old serration and length, and though very much useful in slashing apart any meaty-looking prey he found in the forests, the claws hindered his grip and forced him to abandon his gloves in his assassin's uniform. His scales had finally overtaken his former, smooth human skin, but at least they offered slight protection to his body now. His feet had also grown outward and garnered the sharpened, bladed toenails, and forced him to give up his leggings. He was not happy. He was ninja. But now…he was a freak. No one was around who was like him.

He had spent the better part of two days attempting to get to his former immediate lord's home under master Kahn's orders, hissing and screeching over the situation. Why must master Tsung be so far off from master Kahn? They were supposed to be friends, allies. Why did they not live closer, to share information or work more closely together, benefiting them and the people both? Why did master Tsung live in such hard terrain to climb over? Why? Did he not trust master Kahn? He was needed immediately, needed now! He knew there was a conflict going on!

The Raptor shook his head. He wished to fight in this war, to engulf the enemy in his corrosive saliva, to slash them apart and feast on their hearts….but he could not. Master Kahn had forbade him, he had said, for he needed Reptile at his side as a bodyguard. Though ecstatic to serve his emperor directly, he had felt he could have been put to better use elsewhere, like the front line...

...no. To think like that at all was treason. Master Kahn was always right. It had always been others who would cause his mistakes to happen. They had nearly taken the Earthrealm, had they not? They had even breached the gates of Hell for a short time! The master was infallible! It would be others who had always caused his downfall!

----

"Gods," Quan sputtered out as he leaned downwards to catch his wind, holding his chest in his hand and breathing in deeply. The magician had forced himself to take a quicker pace once he had finally figured he couldn't be too far off. Shifting through the information the villages had given him, he knew that Tsung's villa could not be too much of a distance by then. His hunches and luck had proved their worth to him again, in any event: though the search had taken all day and it was now well into evening, the sky an ever deepening sea of reds and oranges, in front of him was a mansion of the highest luxury.

_Damn him. DAMN HIM. He doesn't deserve this, not without the failures he's caused and all the bloody help he needed…_Chi took in another deep, needed breath…_MY help. _He raised his eyes upward to take everything inThe place even had a moat. Though only two stories, it was certainly still imposing-built with what seemed to be painted marble, decorations carved into these walls, golden dragons encircling the entire house inside the moat. His potential friend certainly knew how to live in style-in his opinion, all the unpractical did.

After all, they usually had no other worthwhile talents assigned to them in life.

----

The sorcerer looked into the mirror. Ignoring the shining gold and ornate woodcarvings that framed the glass, a scowl took its now-daily hold on his face. Wrinkles had begun to line his face, his cheeks flush from breathing, less taut, and more bone showing through the skin.

_Looking into and about the giant throne room of his emperor, Tsung felt extremely small. It had been a month since their retreat from the Earth, and nothing had happened to him-yet. He had lived in constant fear and apprehension for his eventual punishment, however, and today would finally be it. He did his best to conceal the shuddering his body was clearly doing…_

Shang Tsung had lived like this for months, and the months eventually merging together into years. Secluded in what was suppose to be a mere seasonal residence, the desire and sensible decision to escape his lord's wrath had turned it into his new home. Perhaps not to anyone's surprise, Tsung's change of location was not challenged by Kahn-Tsung knew he was more than likely satisfied by the sense of fear instilled into his highest magician. The mere realization of the fact gave Shang another reason to scowl into his reflection. He had no longer been able to rely on his lord for youth, of course, and had been forced to mask himself in the guise of a peasant and kill any locals foolish enough to wander about or away from their villages during the night. But eventually the populace had grown wise to the killer, the brave became the timid, and he had found himself gradually wishing he had not been cursed so long ago by the gods for benefiting himself by his spells.

"_Tsung, we shall be frank. You failed me. How did you?" Kahn calmly asked the figure in front of him. _ _Two muscular, masked guards flanked both his sides from his throne, spears with a most curved blade topping them in the hand of each._

"_I….had conceded another plan that has failed to take the Earthrealm. I have caused the deaths of thousands of your troops. I…have failed in the tournament myself and directly allowed the infidel Kang another step toward his amazing feat of defeating you. I-"_

"_Flattery will get you nowhere, Tsung. I have heard enough of the many mistakes you cost me. You will not get another chance. You shall pay."_

Tsung began the hurried stroll down the hall toward his chamber that he occupied every evening for his studies, knowing that the practice of his arts would occupy his mind for some time. It had been some time before Kahn had begun to regain any sort of favor with him. Finally released from his prison-literal and otherwise-he had been forced to do so much on very little, for a much longer time than he cared to admit. The memories were too much for the sorcerer to bear at times, and reminiscing how small and terrified he was at the time…

_Kahn arose, his hands on hips, eyes glowing, the face-Tsung could tell, even with the mask on-grim. _

"_You will now learn what happens when you fail me, Tsung. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. For that, you pay."_

"_But my lor-oo…aaAAAAAHHHHHHH!"_

_Tsung's screams echoed on. Being physically transformed was always a most painful scenario to be a victim to, especially when it is forced. Tsung could feel with the utmost sensitivity his skin becoming more brittle and the blades beginning to tear through his skull and wrists. The teeth were growing, his muscle mass shrinking….the pain was becoming too much. It had lasted moments, but he was now cowering in his original form, before he cheated creation with his black magic: a scrawny, almost laughable excuse of a Tartakan._

"_Your unease pleasures me. GUARDS! Put this beast into a cage. I have no further use for him."_

Being changed back into a vile, ugly, stupid Tartakan…no….no, Tsung thought, practicing one of the many katas stored deep within one of his spiritual prisoners' minds. He wouldn't think of those days again, certainly not.

…eh? His ears caught an odd noise.

…._ what was that creaking sound? An intruder? No one should be here._

He paused in an instant, his eyes toward the giant doors that opened up into his training room. He could hear it now…footsteps…the floor groaning under the weight of the invader, an odd clacking sound following soon after-

_-Assassin, it has to be an assassin. _The thought both chilled and pleased him as he decided that was what this threat was. He could more than likely overtake him; even with his body at this current ebb of strength…a new soul would always be most welcome to rejuvenate himself….

With a long, slow swing of both doors being pulled away to open into the room that took far too long in Tsung's mind, he readied himself to go into one of the easiest styles for him to execute -he knew that an assassin wouldn't fall so easily to mere fistcuffs-

-_GODS!_

A Raptor!?

The shock lasted only a moment. With a yell that attempted to intimidate, Shang Tsung then immediately uttered out a curse on the killer and readied himself with the position of the Crane.

The Raptor seemed perturbed. So much the better. It readied itself by bending itself at the knees and elbows. _Amusing…._

----

Why was master Tsung attempting to attack him?! Why? It had been years, but surely master Kahn had told master Tsung that his servant had returned! Why did he not? Why were things so confusing now?

Reptile hissed, slowly, at the magician. He did not want to battle him….he looked older, but the lizard had seen him enough in combat to know that he was very formidable, no matter how small or hairless he appeared at a time.

He noticed master Tsung slowly beginning to inch toward his left, obviously attempting to find a suitable moment to rush at him when he could not properly repel any attack. With another slow gurgle of warning, Reptile began to match Tsung in his footsteps, both circling the large, empty room. The space was ironically suited for a battle, and the thought fleeted through Reptile's mind that perhaps his master had envisioned such a scenario eventually happening. The master was indeed clever; for there was nothing in the way to retard movement nor anything to grab as a weapon…just a wide, long, open chamber…

Erm? An idea. Perfect.

The scaled one began to slowly pace backwards, clawed toes clattering against the hard wood, his tail no longer swishing side to side in warning to his opponent. Rather, he crouched, and but for a moment, stayed that way. His tail began to smush up against the floor…

Eyes widened, Tsung had no time to then dodge-

-**CRCK-**"GAAAFH!" was yelled out as he felt himself get thrown back-first against the wall, a slam echoing through the chamber, books toppling from their shelves placed high above. Several fell onto him, one falling squarely onto his cranium. Had the situation not been so life-threatening, Shang would have laughed at such a situation that had just befallen him.

_DAMMIT! That thing…._his Most High Mage had had certainly not expected the reptile to spring at him like a ball, much less spring into a ball and slam into him at frightening speed. He had not expected that….a glance saw his newfound enemy several steps away from him, the beast's teeth glared, almost grinning from the looks of it. Damn him!

Tsung grunted as he pushed himself up with the help of a knee and one hand. He had to fake an injury…fake looking helpless to pull this one off…another grunt and some quick wheezing told the Raptor it had apparently won the match already. Tsung held a hand upwards to indicate to stay away, stay back….his opponent would never expect to look closer, towards his chest, and find an orange magick swirling and building up in the hand held close to his chest. The lizard was moving closer, closer…._arrogant swine…._

"HAAAAAH!" Tsung yelled out, throwing his left arm out in front of him when the reptile came into range. The orange blast-his fabled, feared skull fireball, formed from the very darkness of his soul-screamed out as the vortex of energy slammed into the enemy chest, giving reason for the howl that graced his ears. Another yell came out, this time Tsung's, and he took a quick leap upwards, touching ground with a sneer plastered on his face.

The beast still seemed most afflicted by the attack. Good. With the stride of confidence, Tsung walked over to where his enemy lay, his chest clutched in obvious discomfort. Tsung knew his fireballs always left a burning effect, sometimes permanent….

…. in an instant the reptile's neck was in his hand, the grip tightening…this would be an excellent one to take, an excellent way to give himself youth, even if but for a mere week…he looked downwards at the lizard's clothes, noting he was attired in the suit of ninj-

…"REPTILE!?"

The beast screeched out and began to flail, obviously recognizing the name.

_No. No. NO._

Tsung found himself gingerly letting go of his decommissioned bodyguard. "Reptile. By the gods, I apologize. I am sorry. I had not attempted to recognize you by your clothing. What has happened?"

Reptile took his throat gently in his hands, massaging and attempting to soothe his injury. Tsung silently cursed himself, it was obvious Reptile couldn't speak right now. He had never thought Reptile would…well…become reptilian, but how could he know? It was years! He had not seen a Raptor in millennia, much less his own subordinate! He should have known, damn it….Reptile had used some moves he HAD recognized…

But what if he told Kahn of the attack he sustained? What if Kahn decided he was now a troublemaker, alongside being a seemingly-incompetent sorcerer? He had to do something…anything, to keep that from happening…

"Reptile…." He put an arm around the neck. _Damned creature, you don't deserve to live among higher life-forms. _"You know I am now in debt to you for causing such an injury. Stay the night. Help yourself to provisions from my storerooms and the smokehouse. You are in obvious need of refreshment."

Suddenly the lizard perked up, his tongue flickering in and out at a rapid pace. Of course…the stupid thing wants food. Reptile took a step back from him, put his hand behind his back, and then pulled out a rolled-up parchment. "Eh?"

Reptile jutted the scroll closer to Tsung. It seemed he wanted him to take it. With a snatch it exchanged hands.

"You are free to begin feeding yourself, Reptile, and if you must, you may also come to me and I shall give you any medicine you need. I wish to read this in peace for now." With a bow Reptile then obliged, claws clattering against the wooden floor as attempted to do his master's bidding as quickly as he possibly could.

It was a most fortunate thing the ninja had his back turned, for he did not see the look of disgust Tsung had as he saw him out. He sighed as he turned to view his partially destroyed alcove…skid marks and scratches cut deeply into the floor….books and tomes laying messily in a pile from where he had been slammed against the wall by Reptile's surprise launch…he could not force Reptile to fix this up, or else he would have to explain to his lord what had happened-and why he attacked Kahn's most loyal servant.

He cocked an eyebrow, turning his attention to the paper he held. He unfolded it, and what he saw made him curse the gods even further:

_MY high mage and MOST LOYAL SERVANT Shang Tsung, of KARRTUA in TARTAKA Province:_

_I require your services in rendering a magic that will allow my troops to be shielded, even if but for a day. You know as well as I that our latest war against our many enemies has not been a success; especially with the latest, most cowardly campaign they have recently launched. They, as you also know, have recruited many a traitor to their cause, and even the Shokan, Zionghaian, Jishangese, and the Centaur provinces have risen up against me. This is wholly unacceptable, and once crushed, all who dare turn against my vision shall feel my full wrath._

_I am, as mentioned, in need of a magic that shall allow my mighty armies invincibility or something that will nearly achieve the same effect. The longer the magic may last, the better. Perhaps the longer it is to continue for my troops, the longer you too shall have in being able to live in the obvious decadence and luxury you enjoy but do not deserve. Do not fail me. The consequences if you do shall be most dire._

_PRESENTED BY HIS MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY SHAO I, OF THE GLORIOUS DYNASTY OF KAHN, LORD OF ALL THE OUTWORLD, PROTECTOR OF HUMANITY, FRIEND OF ALL._

…. even if he had read the title of the bastard, he could never help but be disgusted anew as he saw it. The emperor had NEVER earned such a title….now with the renegade movement at a newfound peak and new rebellions popping up almost weekly, it was almost laughable to read….

Hm. He knew that the Rebellion was in a current alliance with Edenrealm in order to take over as the new government of Outworld and all its subservient realms. The Rebellion was strong, Edenia, even freed but a mere seven years, had an enthusiastic patriotism that had governed it in the time it was under Kahn's tutelage and in current day. They had been a most powerful and threatening force together….in the mere two years Queen Sindel had declared war the empire was under a constant state of siege from her forces. He had wished to stay far away from the war, to hopefully not worry about being conscripted into it and possibly displeasing Kahn for an action he never had any wish to do in the first place….

_Gods….shall life never be as I deserv-_….something that sounded like scream suddenly pierced his ears. _Now what?_ _Gods, what a day…._

Tsung found himself pacing to the nearest window to find out.

----

"Eh?" she mumbled, her interest perked by an almost childish shriek. She was perched on one of the many draconic gargoyles that lined each window's side. Silently, so as not to attract any attention to her, she took the pack from off her back, spread her wings to their full length and began to glide above the roof of this gaudy hellhole to the other side-she wanted to find out what was going on.

----

"BACK! BACK! GODS DAMN YOU TO HELL, YOU…"he sputtered for a suitable word…."DEMON!"-he squarely threw his fist into Scorpion's facemask. Despite the loud crack in the mask and having been pushed back, Scorpion seemed rather unfazed-"WHY WON'T YOU BLOODY **DIE?!**"

Quan Chi was having a most long and frustrating day, indeed.

_He had come full circle around Tsung's palace, the sky an ever-deeper crimson. It had been frankly depressing to take it all in. Chi knew that this man was attempting to hide his shortcomings with the grandeur and intimidation the mansion carried on every inch of its being. And here! HERE, in the very behind of it all-another acid moat within the larger original one…surrounding a giant annular courtyard…tall statues of a fat Earthling prophet encircling it! He did not know which one, and certainly did not care. The Earth had some of the more sillier interpretations of the gods, and were egotistical enough to raise missionaries and voices of the deities to an equal status in the pantheon._

_He strode into the court slowly, cautiously….beautiful, it certainly was…and dangerous. The corroded, skeletal remains of some poor fool floating about in the moat told him that. Perhaps Tsung had just consumed another soul to keep his undeserved youth?_

_Bah! Tsung should have been rotting in the Netherealm…he was even suppose to have blood from there, wasn't he? It made so much sense….that damnable place with its desolation and sultry heat…heat…_

…_.he looked down and found embers beginning to flicker about his feet. A small yelp found its way out of his mouth, eyes widening with shock. What? How the bloody heck could this-_

…_.those flames were growing faster by the second!_

_A quick leap back kept him from being engulfed in the rapidly expanding fireball. By the gods, whoever had the power to do that? Surely some flame elemental; the ground was stone tile….a flame couldn't come out of just nowhere…._

…_.he heard a snort from behind. A quick turn, complete with a flurry of emotions that primarily registered as shock and aggravation, told the necromancer who it was that almost caused him to burn up._

_Scorpion._

"_Did you think you would get away, fool? DID YOU?!" Scorpion then yelled out. "You are pathetic….you left an excellent trail to follow…"_

_More frustation rushed through Chi's mind. Damned ninja….he had never been one to know the art of stealth, and he certainly never had reason to. And of course, he never expected Scorpion to get lucky enough to track him down…_

A gloved fist came hurling at him with astonishing speed; and he turned his head to the side just in time. His mind was racing for a quick solution to this dilemma. Even though since having been out of the Netherealm had given him almost all of his strength back, Chi was amazed at how relentless the blasted asshole was. The specter had to have been traveling for days as well, on top of the beatings he got from the two oni. Yet he was still as energetic as ever, not even seeming to breath hard during this fight. Why did he not give up…!?

A right hook flashed by him, missing him by centimeters, but Chi's mind then flashed to him an idea.

With the ninja's arm fully extended, Chi then grabbed hold of it as fast as he could, one hand over the fist, the other hand grabbing hold of the elbow. Cocking his eyes to his right, he smiled inwardly as he saw Scorpion's normally enraged demeanor take on a look of confusion, even if for but a moment.

_Perfect._

Chi then pulled Scorpion's arm into as much a one-eighty degree turn as he could, mustering all his strength and ardreline into it.

The scream that emitted from his rival was indeed music to Chi's ears….stepping back to let Scorpion wallow in his pain and attempt to massage his worthless limb, the sorcerer then started one of his oft-used chants, complementing it with swirling his arms and hands about in ovaloid shapes. Within mere seconds, the green energy began to take shape and crackle into being in his palms; he intended to knock Scorpion away as far as possible and give himself breathing room.

The chant ended. Chi tossed the ball of his essence, a scream emaciating from both him and the viridian fireball.

….**wmpf "**Aaah!"

_PERFECT!_

Another yell escaping his lips, Chi rapidly rushed up at Scorpion, fists clenched. The ninja had absolutely no idea the projectile had been coming at him, and now he was doubled over, barely on his feet, hacking up blood and staining his mask. Without any hint of mercy Chi drove his fist into Scorpion's eyes, knocking him back up. Even without pausing for the end of the specter's scream he threw his knee into the stomach, causing Scorpion to bend down once again. Another step was taken back; again, Chi began to form another of his greenish projectiles. Yet a smile was on his face, and he actually allowed himself to take his time in muttering the spell, the discipline and sense of emergency dominating his mind moments before now fading. Scorpion was obviously out of his league, now. Wasn't in the Netherealm to augment his strength…he was like a fish out of water….

….another shriek, another fireball. Another hit, one the sorcerer knew hurt very much.

Chi almost laughed, impressed his latest attack caused the ninja to actually fly off of his feet and slam onto his spine, perilously close to the moat's border. A small smirk on his face, he began to slowly walk up to his possibly unconscious opponent, who was twitching ever so gently. Slowly. Even with the excitement of battle, the sorcerer attempted to remain calm and calculating. _He was a ninja, he could be planning something…._

"HRAAAAAAAH!"

"GODS!" Chi shouted, throwing his arms out in to shield himself from his opponent's surprise lunge at him. Immediately he locked hands with Scorpion, who was already attempting to crush them in his own. He was at the same time dodging the myriad kicks the ninja was tossing almost without any thought to connecting them. Dammit. The man…never…bloody…gave….UP!

He felt himself pushed back, though thankfully nothing else had happened to him. He had to think…fasthe looked about, looking with little hope for something that could conceivably be used as a weapon…no suck luck_….what could I….gods, no…_

It looked like Scorpion was readying himself for another one of those goddamned spears.

The oni felt tightness in his chest. What could he do...

The spear was thrown.

Almost inexplicably, he found himself roaring and running toward it. With a silent prayer to the deities Chi suddenly ducked and forced himself to slide under it, slide closer, slide with his leg bent at the knee.

He raised it as soon as he got close enough, and felt his boot slam into Scorpion's chest.

And so, with a scream, he then had the unexpected result of hearing the specter bellow with terror as he fell toward the acid, and then a splash...a splash soon accompanied by the sound of flesh crackling and sizzling from corrosion.

He got up, slowly, panting hard, attempting to assess what had happened. The one thought that kept flashing into his mind above all others told him Scorpion was dead, again…eroding away. He was lucky….his luck was now back, it had to be….

….

A single clap could be heard. Then another. Someone was ever so slowly applauding him.

Quan Chi, still breathing hard, turned quietly to see his audience. He knew there was only one person around to be giving this cheering, but his addled mind still had to take a moment to register who it was.

"Very nice," Shang Tsung calmly called out. "Are you always that desperate to end things?"

----

It took a moment to realize Tsung was being sarcastic. Once it dawned on him, however, it made Chi angry.

"You are in no room to talk, sorcerer…" he sputtered. He took a moment to grasp at anything that could possibly give Tsung insult. "Look at you," he continued, knowing this would be laughable. "Your age has begun to show. Wrinkles on the face…obviously have not been getting what you so crave…obviously, the master has stopped feeding his dog…"

Tsung's face grimaced. Oh. That went better than he expected.

"Quiet. You are a trespasser. I am still very much alive and able to destroy you, stranger. And I know the only unrecognizable persons here are ones that attempt to kill me." With that his sneer curled downward more, and Chi saw he began to ready a stance for an apparent fight.

"WAIT. I…am Quan Chi, former arch-mage to his lord Shinnok."

Tsung paused, and he immediately dropped his aggressive stance. "….lord Shinnok, you say…."

_He's already impressed. _"Yes," he said, beginning to smile.

Tsung still kept quiet for a second, taking it in. Then he did to Chi the unexpected: he threw his head back and started to laugh. Loudly.

"Ah!" he managed to get out. "I HAVE heard of you! I remember! You needed me for the location of the amulet! It has been so long. Obviously the years have been hard on you." He began to chortle once more, but stopped himself. "So how did you turn into the miserable wretch you are today!"

"Listen…" Chi mumbled, keeping the anger at bay. "You…are hardly one to speak, with all your failed plans, much more costly and pathetic by mine…Shinnok died with his own plan, not mine…the same…" he gulped, still trying to keep from rushing and strangling his fellow sorcerer…"…and all you have to show is an angry lord and embarrassment for the ages. No doubt you have been mocked enough."

Once more Tsung looked annoyed, though it was clear he was still attempting to look important. "You have no idea on what goes on with my plans. They would never have been failures had they been executed proper-"

"-maybe if they weren't so GODDAMNED IDIOTIC AND HALF-BAKE-"

"SILENCE! You are obviously in search of my life!"

"No, now listen. I-"

"You have no hope with reasoning with me, dog-"

"THAT MAN I ELIMINATED WAS GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"…what?"

Even Chi found himself taken aback. He hadn't planned on shouting that out. But…

"…yes. You and I know of each other. And that man…his name is Scorpion…"

"…I know who he is, I have had the misfortune to have been forced to work with him before…"

"….yes. But he was to kill you. I had come to your grounds as well, but for different reasons. I know he despises you. You will not believe me? You would do well to do so. You would have had no clue he had come, and he would likely have succeeded in assassinating you, especially at your state, with no one to protect you."

"I have guards, and as we speak I have a powerful ally and master of nin-"

"….who wouldn't have known of this either. You are in my debt, sorceror. With that in mind, I come to you with a proposal."

"Proposal?" Tsung cocked an eyebrow. "So now you come to me expecting a reward for killing a potential assassin with a cheap shot."

…that comment would rankle on his mind, but Chi forced himself to continue. "I…do not expect a reward. I come as an equal."

Tsung's smile came back. This was getting good. "A tired, bloodied, dirty man cannot expect to be my equal." His tone had already become extremely conscending. "What do you plan to do? Be a fellow mage? I'm sorry, but I only have servants, not partners."

"Not even if they can offer you…immortality?"

A moment's ponderance passed, then Tsung to laugh. "Hm, hm….oh? And how will you do that? Pray to your dead god? Ask him to kindly come back from wherever the gods go to and make sure I'm not going to die? Please. I have better chances with my alchemy than whatever you have to offer."

"You have control of souls. I…have the location of an army."

"What?"

"You were alive during his reign. As was I. Onaga. The Dragon King."

"….what?"

"I know the location of his troops, where they were mummified. The ones that never lost a battle. The ones that won every province and city in this miserable place, and who would have conquered much more had Onaga ordered them to."

"You're…you're trying to fool me….you're nothing but a wretched liar…a mutant would be such a thing…"

"FINE. Do not believe me. Age and wither away, fellow mage. Rot in Hell as I find another one with your abilities. I am sure there are more." The disgusted look on Tsung's face told Chi there was.

"And what shall I do?"

"Once we have a source, we shall have you revive the…spirits of the army. That is all I need."

"And how will we get such a source?"

"With this," the oni said, pointing to his belt.

A jaw suddenly dropped. "…that is…the…"

"Amulet. Shinnok's amulet, the one that caused so much grief for the Elders. And it is mine. How else do you think Liu Kang could defeat such a powerful adversary? I held it, all this time…"

Tsung's eyes had enlarged quite a bit upon being told of this. He had known where the tablet was, had always had the itch in the back of his mind that told him he should search it out…but now…here it was. A device that could give him power, the stuff he needed to take what he knew should be his…he eyed it quickly, but for just a second. He could not allow himself to look desperate for it, no…  
"Tell me. Will you join me, or no? Rot, or prosper?" Chi held his hand out, a completely emotionless look on his face. Obviously, if he was anticipating anything, he was now showing it.

There would be problems….he shouldn't risk it….the emperor would kill him slowly for this…

…but wasn't he essentially doing that already? Yes, yes he was…it was time to end this, to be FREE again…

"Very well." Tsung took the hand with his own, and shook.

----

He screeched happily, loudly.

The Reptile had come up from the cellar with a bulging sack of food that would last him the journey back to master Kahn's palace. He had been most appreciative of master Tsung's offer of refreshment, and realized how foolish he had been to think that master Tsung would attempt harm. He wished to make up for his aggressiveness, but did not know how.

But now he could not find master Tsung anywhere. Where could he be?

He had been searching for him all about the mansion, and was beginning to lose hope. Had he gone off? Left him behind? Was he perhaps going to master Kahn now? Yes…that would be it. Master Tsung was a hard worker. Perhaps he could catch up with him on the trail back.

…eh?!

In an instant he had stopped. He snorted inwardly twice-his snout had suddenly picked up the scent of blood. Fresh blood. Someone had just been fighting….had something come for master Tsung…?!

He forced himself to stay still, attempting, failing, to keep his excitement at bay. Whatever altercation had happened was now apparently over. He was both saddened and elated by that fact. He was happy the threat was over, but now he could no longer be a part in eliminating it…

Still unmoving and vigilante, he now began to hear voices. Calm ones, two of them!

….one person speaking was master Tsung, the other's voice belonged to…

…master Chi?!

Immediately he began to stumble and run over to where he heard the talking. What was master Chi doing? Was he not dead? Was he not gone? What could he be doing with master Tsung? He would protect his lord at all costs!

The voices grew closer, and closer. Ah. He could now hear them without effort. With the window nearby, he took a look out into the majestic courtyard that made up the back area of master Tsung's palace.

….odd…why did master Tsung talk to master Chi as if they were friends…? Most peculiar…

…they seemed to be in good spirits…both were beginning to smile, yet they seemed immersed in their discussion…apparently planning on some military expedition….portals…

…enemies?

"…_.yes. Enemies. You and I know there are many who wish to do us harm,"_ Tsung said to his ally, his voice blurred to Reptile's senses by the window and the distance he was from it. The green ninja pressed his face almost against the glass, in a futile attempt to listen better.

"…_yes…you're right….but who in mind? Who's important right now?"_

"_My lord Kahn. And Liu Kang."_

"_What?! Are you crazy, man?!"_

WHAT?! Master Kahn?! Danger?!

"_Yes. Do you not see? Liu Kang has been the reason Earth has not been taken. Kahn has since become an incompetent buffoon, yet still holds control over a vast empire. Eliminate them….and our plan can be marched out with almost no trouble. These two are by far the most dangerous people to live, and yet they have at times proven to be beatable. Let us attack now. Let us destroy them before they can react."_

"_Others will come. Why, we might as well add Lord Raiden to the list on whom to kill, and that is nigh-impossible!"_

"_Inconsequential. With these two gone he will suddenly have no one to turn to so as to do his dirty work."_

Reptile was drooling, anger overtaking his mind. He could not, yet did not wish to help it. He wanted masters Tsung and Chi to PAY….

"…_okay. So when shall we strike?"_

"_Two days."_

Wha…?!

"_What?! You're overreaching! Don't be a fool!"_

"_Ah, but it is in fact the perfect time. We are ready and energetic for the plan. But much more importantly, he has ordered me to come to him with a new magic for the army facing Edenia and its allies. Hence an opening to get into his court, to get close to him."_

"_It is too grave a danger…"_

"_If this is to succeed, the better. Before doubts set in. Before anyone learns of this."_

"…_.fine…but you and I will discuss this very carefully on how to do this. And we will discuss this every waking moment until then. Do you understand?"_

Tsung smiled_. "I would not have dreamed of any other way."_

Reptile found himself pacing away quickly, thoughts coming into his mind here and there, about master Kahn, his safety, on why and how master Tsung could somehow fathom betraying master Kahn, on how he had to protect master Kahn….

….how he had to kill both mas….Tsung and Chi in order to protect master Kahn…how he would make them suffer, make the mammals beg for mercy and squeal with pain as he tore their flesh off, and ate it in front of their horrified eyes…

It suddenly dawned on him he had to begin journeying to master Kahn's palace as soon as he could. Within moments he was heading toward the doorways in the front of the building, knowing he could keep his master safe.

----

By the time the two men had finished discussing their plot, Nitara had noticed that the evening had already turned into a dazzling, starry night sky. Had she spent so much time here already? She hadn't expected to…. but at least what she learned was most defiantly a most welcome change of pace, and she was thinking as fast as she could on how to take advantage of the revelation.

She knew that good fortune had been coming to her for some time now, and was ever-thankful for it. She had persuaded master Blanque to allow her to begin trailing a particularly stupid member of Kahn's court when she had proven he was beginning to become careless and negligent on stealth and secrecy. It was an opening to a great blow against Kahn, and Blanque finally realized it.

That idiot was Reptile, and he would be the key to the Vampires' freedom.

She was a member of their resistance against Kahn and was a proud one at that. She had been with it since her early years, joining up with it back when it was part of the rest of the rebellion against Outworlder domination…thank the gods that the Vampires broke off from the the rabble when the ranks became bloated due to the surge of recruits after Kahn's Earthrealm invasion. They didn't need others' help, they had and would always be self-reliant.

She had, of course, grown in importance to the resistance thanks to her innate cleverness and her skill in martial arts. She had always thought of new ways to infiltrate an enemy position, a new hiding place if someone actually caught sight of her, a new way to escape or kill someone if need be…she was a very powerful cog in the machine, indeed. She had never had to worry about any real close calls during any spying, and she didn't plan on one of those now.

She had been trailing various Outworlders for some time now. There was, of course, Reptile. Scrunching her nose in disgust at the thought of him, she had learned he was blindly loyal to Kahn, but he was becoming so grotesque now….ugh. There was that odd brightly-colored yellow being, who was essentially walking in circles through the forest near the city of Shian…oh…and near that the Edenians and the rest of the Outworld resistance, besieging the place. That there were so many important and varied characters in the same general area had been most interesting. She had been trying to wrack her brain on how to take advantage of this all, how to give that oversized cretin of an emperor a smack he'd never recover from…and then her race, the planet, would be forever in her debt thanks to her single-handedly winning them their freedom. Forever! Nitara….the Brave? The Beautiful? The Clever? A twinge of a smile touched her lips as she ran through the list of titles she'd receive once more when posterity would mark her for the tomes and times.

It disappeared, however, into a frown as she snapped into reality and the cold hard fact she would have no title for posterity if she didn't come up with a plan. But what could she use? She had the pieces, she felt….she just needed to put them together.

…well, the news of Tsung and that other guy…that could be the catalyst she needed….but…how…hm.

….maybe this could work…

….and speak of the devil, there's the lizard now.

The Vampiress watched him immediately dash out into the night, the darkness apparently not hindering his speed or gait at all. Well, animals were made to be like that.

She took a graceful leap off of the rooftop of the palace, limbs straight, eyes closed, her chin pointing upwards to the heavens. Within a moment her wings had spread out to their full height and were flapping laboriously to begin rising her body into the air high enough for a vantage point over the terrain. She opened her eyes to see the beast already a good distance away from her. _Damn._

With a grunt she began gliding toward him as fast as she possibly could, cursing the fact she had to begin talking to him a lot sooner than she had wanted to. The stupid animal was a lot faster than she thought, and she was carrying a large pack in her hands…she didn't like that, but she had to take the pack off of her back to give her wings the spread and distance they needed to fly…beads of sweat had begun to form around the top of her forehead, and she knew she wasn't going to look pretty when she came down into contact with him.

….IF she could come into contact with him in time. With a sigh, she realized the direct approach was best. At least she had finally caught up to him; several large, brambly vines had entangled and slowed him down.

"HEY! **HEY!**"

He paused, his head turning every which way imaginable and tongue flicking in and out of his mouth. He was obviously confused at where his caller was. _Dumbass._

She allowed herself to glide down gently so she could land on one foot, her other leg bent, her arms both bent at the elbow, with hands in front of her holding the bag that held the bait for the beast. Even if she was perspiring right now, she still wanted to make a grand entrance. It was the proper thing for a woman of her caliber to do.

Reptile hissed. She merely cocked an eyebrow.

"Hold it. I come in peace, friend. My name, Nitara," she said, extending a bow to him. "You see, I too heard what you had. I know of the plot to assassinate our dear emperor."

He visibly calmed down upon hearing those last two words. Obviously, he was also gullible as sin.

"I…wish to help you, but not necessarily in just defeating those two mages. I have information that may prove useful to you."

He hissed, arching himself into a straighter position. She admittedly didn't know whether to take that as a good or bad sign, but she continued her speech nonetheless.

"I know of the precise location of the Edenian expeditionary force. I know where-"

He roared, loudly, and actually began to drool. _Oh, my lord Dracul, yuck….he's beginning to go into a damned frenzy…_

"…CALM DOWN, YOU!"

He did, looking at her with mild shock. She was impressed. Stupid, blindly loyal, and timid! How he got to be so influential in Kahn's court, she could never wager.

"Yes. But I…ah…require you to travel with me, as I am not…good at pinpointing the distance nor in explaining it in…words. I admit I am also in need of a…partner…" _He's never going to believe this…_"…to help me in getting back and to the army base safely. I require your services, and would be most appreciative of it."

…he paused, a quizzical air about him. _Shit, he's too clever for even tha-_

-he nodded, and bellowed upwards into the heavens. _HE BELIEVED IT! LORD DRACUL, YES! But stay calm._

"Ah. As a sign of our newfound camaraderie, as well as a way to guarantee you will help me, I have this." Finishing those words, she began to shuffle the giant bag in her arms, flustering for its opening. Finding it, she reached inside and began to shake the bag off of its contents, which to Reptile looked very shiny and pretty and…

…..he snorted. The blade! THE BLADETHEBLADETHEBLADE-

"I take it you know what this is," she mumbled to him, holding the large serrated sword in her hands. Ye gods, the thing was heavy. And ugly. But it was something that'd be dear to him, and she knew it, and she was happy the resistance allowed her to take it from their storage. That kirehashi…kirehami….yeah, kirehashi sword was used only by those lizards' royalty, and he seemed to recognize it for what it was-

-"HEY!"

Reptile had snatched it out of her hands in ecstasy, much quicker-indeed, much more in general-than she had anticipated, and with snorts and yelps was swinging it all about. She took a step back-she sure as hell didn't need to be cut up in his little world he was now engrossed in. He was supposed to be of an intelligent race…how did he let himself turn into a virtual child over this thing?

A minute had gone by when she rolled her eyes and sighed. "You. Listen. I still have more to offer. Do not forget what I mentioned earlier."

He stopped waving the sword and once again looked up quizzically at her. Seeing this made Nitara think of how this must be nannies feel like.

"You know that the Edenian force has been besieging and attacking Shian on and off. As I have said, I know exactly where the area of their camp is. How would you feel if you would be the one to tell our ruler their location, and thusly be the one and lead a counterstrike?"

Reptile roared, once again beginning to flail. Obviously, she had him in the palm of her hand now.

"I shall show you the path. As I have already said, I am in need of a friend to help guard me and help keep me safe."

He nodded, eagerly. He began to reach into his bag and then took out a large slab of meat. He began to push it toward her face, in his mind offering it to his newfound companion to show their friendship was sealed.

_Ecch! _"I…don't quite need refreshment now. But let us make haste."

With that she wagged a single finger for him to follow her, and began to think of how she could now expand upon this. Great things were rushing through her mind, and she was determined to make them all work. If she could get what she was thinking of doing to work…

She smiled to herself. Nitara the Clever was the best sounding.


End file.
